Friction Land “Friction Land”

I’m not so sure that San Jose has a particular sound, yet when I popped Friction Land in, it made perfect sense to discover they were from here. The leadoff track on their self-titled debut, “Just You & I” doesn’t have any local pop culture references that I can hear, but it still seems odd that I’m not at Nickel City while listening to them.
“Giving It All Away” tries very hard and reminds me of Alice in Chains. The backing wails during the chorus seem out of place (as if the wailer was looking for something to do), but otherwise this song does everything right.
The wailing is back in “Something Special,” but it makes more sense here. It’s got to be loud when done live, but people seem to like those things. I mean, Gaslight Anthem has made a living doing it.
Limp Bizkit fans would like “Follow Me,” which has nothing to do with Twitter. It seems that the lyrics are meant to be thoughtful, because they are mixed high and easier to understand than on the other tracks. Although they didn’t inspire me, perhaps you are more their speed. “Jesus, Buddha, Confucius/I want to know what the truth is.” Sure, why not. At least it’s a faster song.
The other track of note is “Faking Emotion.” It inexplicably has synths in it. This one is for prog fans.
Maybe our scene involves clear enunciation, no doubt an effect of San Jose Unified School District’s excellent test scores. I’m clearly really locked in to Friction Land even if I’m not inspired by it.